Way too many religions in the world threaten their believers with going to a bad place if they misbehave. Let’s call it Hell. Or maybe Purgatory, if there’s a chance you might leave and go to a good place at some point. Think about that what you will. But in the Middle Ages, one religion went a step further than usual with this belief: the Catholic church offered their believers a way to buy themselves free from eternal punishment. With the purchase of a papal Indulgence, they advertised, your soul will go straight to heaven, all your sins forgiven. And as a side effect, the money will pay for a shiny new basilica in Rome. This practice was not universally popular. It was so unpopular, in fact, that a German priest and theologian rallied against it and caused a schism in the church that was never mended. And that’s why we get Mea Culpa, a game about indulgences, this year, exactly 500 years, after Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg.

From haggis to caber toss, Scotland is full of traditions that seem odd to an outsider. But the oddest tradition has recently been discovered by Günter Burkhardt: when the Scots build a castle for their clan, it’s not a collaborative effort like you would expect. Every builder wants floors in his or her own color to top of all the tower. The resulting castle is neither very hospitable to live in nor does it have great defensive value, but it is a home for your clan, and someone made a lot of money building it.

Not every game can be a brain-twisting, deeply strategic game. A gaming evening/weekend/vacation needs the fillers, the quick, light games that nevertheless everyone enjoys. And that’s where Pickomino, a game that you wouldn’t expect to show up in a serious gamer’s play time, has its niche.

In an age of boardgames made of cardboard, some games stand out for their material. But a real wood cube as game “board” is not the only thing Master Thieves has to offer: you will also find a good amount of strategy and the greatest challenge to your memory and sense of direction I know about in any recent game.

Mord im Arosa is a very, very unusual mystery game. There is no deduction element at all and neither are you supposed to hide your identity. Instead, the whole game is about listening where the clue cubes land in the tower when they are dropped in.
Unusual? Yes. Fun? Find out.

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In an age of boardgames made of cardboard, some games stand out for their material. But a real wood cube as game “board” is not the only thing Master Thieves has to offer: you will also find a good amount of strategy and the greatest challenge to your memory and sense of direction I know about in any recent game.

A train robbery can really ruin your day if you’re one of the passengers. Six bandits trying to rob your train at the same time, but working against each other? With a Marshal thrown in ot fend them off? That’s actually pretty hilarious to watch. And on the gorgeous 3D train of Colt Express, it’s even more fun. All of the chaos, in three dimensions.

It’s not easy being a god. Unless you already established monotheism, then it’s all easy sailing. But to get there, some hard work will be necessary. Summoning tornados and tsunamis, ensuring a good harvest for your people and fighting the eternal danger of atheism, it’s all in a days work for a god.

The world of fashion is not a usual setting for boardgames, but Prêt-à-Porter nails it on the first try. It was nominated for Polish Game of the Year this year, and this year the whole world can enjoy the English edition.

The ultimate question about life, the universe and everything can finally be answered. Who would win in a fight, Pirates or Ninjas? 42. Sorry, doesn’t make sense after all. But at least you can answer all the other big questions as well. Dinosaurs or Robots? Aliens or Zombies? All that and more now has an answer, and the answer is Smash Up.

Village is a medieval countryside life simulator. Only it cuts away the boring 99% of it and lets you make the decisions that shape your fameeply’s lives. Should the new kid learn a craft? Go into politics? Maybe go and see the world. Everything is possible, and everything might earn you a spot in the village chronice – or in an unmarked grave.

Space is big. Big and empty. That’s what our science teachers told us. It’s also dead – and deadly – wrong. Wherever our exploration vessel shows up, nasty things are just waiting to blow us up. To get back in one piece, all players have to cooperate and deal with a tight time limit while the computer is yelling at them about everything going wrong.